Includes bibliographical references (pages 231-243) and index.
Contents
Problems of interpretation : approaching conspiracy in text and discourse -- The slave power according to Salmon P. Chase : entering the mainstream of partisan rhetoric, 1845-1854 -- Charles Sumner's "crime against Kansas" : conspiracy rhetoric in the oratorical mold -- Lincoln, conspiracy rhetoric, and the "house divided" : assessing the judgment of history -- Lessons of the slave power conspiracy : conspiracy rhetoric at the center and fringe.